4/2/2019
Topic:
Students With Disabilities
Margareth Fleming
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I have a student who has Autism in my course currently and probably his biggest struggle in my class is his ability to stay focused on the task at hand and understanding typical social cues. Because of his inability to understand social cues, he very quickly allows himself to get distracted by conversations around him and often interjects himself into conversations that aren't pertaining to him. At this point in the year, most of his classmates are aware that they are not to engage when he says things that he shouldn't be saying. While this doesn't impact the skill level he needs to complete my work, it impacts the amount of time he personally needs to complete work. |
4/2/2019
Topic:
Tools and Strategies
Margareth Fleming
|
Task Cards would be something that I could implement easily in my classroom that students would very much benefit from. I often include videos for them to watch of myself doing the assignment, so that if they get lost or confused they have something to reference. For some students though, this is too much for them to try and do all at once and they really need it broken down into portions for them. By using task cards to break down the steps, it would appear much less complex and at an easier level for them to obtain.
We also use Peer Partners a lot in my classroom. I tend to strategically seat them in a way that allows them to have people on either side of them that they could ask for help if they get stuck. My classes are always on the larger side, so it's easier for the quiet ones to get lost in the shuffle and end up needing help much longer than they should. If they have partners that they can get help from, then it makes it so that they can much more quickly get help instead of waiting for me to help other students before them.
Like I mentioned, I'm a tech teacher and the biggest tool I have discovered is providing videos of myself talking them through completing the drawings they have been assigned. It's easy for them to get turned around and confused - and often they know how to do it, but they second guess their abilities so much that they wont even attempt it. By having the videos, it's that extra security that they need without my having to sit next to them the entire time. |
4/2/2019
Topic:
Assessment of Learning
Margareth Fleming
|
Within my classroom, the most common adaptation I need to make within my assessments is to make sure that I am only checking them for understanding on some key parts, or to decrease the quantity of what I am grading.
For example, sometimes my students with autism get overwhelmed with the amount of drawings required within the time they need to finish it. When that happens, I'll ask that they only turn in 2/4 drawings, instead of the 4 drawings the rest of the class needs to to.
The main accommodation that I provide in my classroom is preferential seating. I find that when they feel confident about who they are sitting next too, they work much more easily and tend to stay focused more. |